Today's Telecom Pulse
Vodacom invests $666M for 30% stake in Maziv fibre group
Vodacom announced a R12.64 billion ($666 million) purchase of a 30% equity stake in fibre infrastructure provider Maziv. The deal includes R6.28 billion ($331 million) of goodwill, R7.93 billion ($418 million) in cash, R4.57 billion ($240 million) of fibre assets and contractual rights, and R143 million in capitalised costs.
Also developing:
By the numbers: BizLink to acquire Blackstone's Interplex Datacom for $850M
Can Africa Succeed Where India Failed with the $40 Smartphone?
The GSMA announced a pilot program to launch $40 4G smartphones in Congo, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda by 2026, aiming to connect tens of millions of Africans who are offline despite network coverage. The initiative bundles operators, manufacturers, financiers and development agencies to produce ultra‑low‑cost devices. Past attempts in India, such as the $4 Freedom 251 and $25 Firefox phone, collapsed because of unsustainable economics and poor performance. Rising memory costs and the need for supportive policies make scaling the phones a complex challenge.
Kenya Moves to Let Courts Order ISPs to Block Illegal Livestreams
Kenya’s draft Copyright and Related Rights Bill 2026 would empower courts to issue blocking orders against internet service providers that host illegal livestreams of sports and entertainment events. The legislation introduces a formal notice‑and‑takedown regime and safe‑harbour protections for platforms...
DoCoMo and Keio University Demonstrate ‘World’s First Stable, High-Fidelity Robot Teleoperation via Commercial 5G Using Low-Latency Slicing
NTT DoCoMo and Keio University demonstrated the world’s first stable, high‑fidelity robot teleoperation using commercial 5G with low‑latency slicing (Configured Grant). The system combined Configured Grant slicing and Keio’s Real Haptics to transmit force feedback with minimal latency and jitter....
UK Government Unveils Gigabit Broadband Upgrade Tracker
The UK government has launched an online address checker that lets businesses and households verify whether they are slated for a gigabit broadband upgrade under the Project Gigabit scheme. The programme, funded with £5 billion, now brings gigabit‑capable service to more than...
Tells.co Among First U.S. Platforms Approved for RCS Business Messaging
Tells.co has become one of the first U.S. platforms cleared to run Rich Communication Services (RCS) Business Messaging campaigns. RCS upgrades traditional SMS with high‑resolution images, branded sender IDs, interactive buttons, and swipeable product carousels, and its adoption is accelerating...
Pilot Photonics Selected by Finchetto for Optical Network Switch
Pilot Photonics, an Irish integrated‑laser specialist, has partnered with Finchetto to supply its nanosecond tunable lasers for the development of the world’s first fully optical passive network switch. The switch aims to slash data‑centre power consumption by up to 20×...
Du and Huawei Partner to Deliver 10 Gbps 5G-A Network Experience
UAE telecom du has signed an MoU with Huawei to roll out a 10 Gbps‑class 5G‑Advanced (5G‑A) network across the United Arab Emirates. The partnership will deploy Huawei’s U6G radio and 3‑component carrier aggregation to deliver ultra‑large bandwidth in both outdoor...
MTN South Africa Struggles as Competition Bites in Prepaid Market
MTN South Africa reported a 10.1% drop in EBITDA to R17.7 billion, driven by a shrinking prepaid base, higher bad‑debt provisions and a modest 2% rise in service revenue. Prepaid subscribers fell 0.7% and prepaid revenue contracted 2.3% (3.9% in Q4),...
Case Study | Geospatial Technology Accelerating India’s Telecom Growth Story
India’s telecom sector is leveraging geospatial technology to accelerate network rollouts and bridge the digital divide. Jio’s AirFiber project used Esri’s ArcGIS platform to create a national‑scale 3D GIS model covering over 100 million buildings in 900 cities. The system generated...
The Techco of Tomorrow: Comarch Communications’ Autonomous Approach to Satellite-Terrestrial Convergence
At Mobile World Congress 2026, Comarch Communications’ CSO Tymoteusz Wrona outlined the company’s push to embed agentic artificial intelligence into its OSS/BSS platforms to create autonomous, API‑driven networks. The strategy targets measurable efficiency gains and positions telcos to monetize satellite‑terrestrial...
Tejas Networks Wins Deal to Supply 4G RAN in South Asia
Tejas Networks announced it has secured a contract to supply its 4G radio access network equipment to an unnamed telecom operator in South Asia. The deal, disclosed in a regulatory filing, marks a strategic push to broaden the company’s international...
Australia Mobile Services Market: Telstra, Optus, and TPG Drive 5G Growth and Rising Data Revenue
Australia’s mobile services market remains dominated by Telstra, Optus and TPG, which together control the majority of subscribers and revenue. Telstra leads with roughly 40% share and A$10 billion annual mobile revenue, backed by an A$800 million four‑year 5G investment to reach...
Getting Network Automation Right: A Practical Strategy for Enterprise Networks
Enterprise network automation hinges on strategic planning rather than just tool selection. Leaders must prioritize process maturity, governance, and skill development before deploying IaC platforms like Terraform or Ansible. A phased, high‑frequency task approach mitigates risk in brownfield environments, while...
Reliance Communications Files Review Plea Against SC Order on Spectrum Sale Under IBC
Reliance Communications has filed a review petition in the Supreme Court challenging the February 13 order that bars the sale or transfer of spectrum under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC). The court held that spectrum, as a scarce public resource,...
Nvidia CPO's Distinct Architecture Demands Error‑rate Focus over Meta Hype
One observation I have- everyone is mooning about the Meta data and it’s great. But the Nvidia CPO uses a totally different modulation architecture. The success of Broadcom at Meta is not a direct read through to Nvidia CPO. And no...
Meta Reports 10× Reliability Boost After Fixing Gen 1 Issue
Drew Alduino from Meta presented update on reliability of Broadcom Bailey gen 1 systems. 10x pluggables once a manufacturing issue with elsfp was isolated. 40M test hours. Gen2 hardware hasn’t failed enough yet to count even with more device hours...
Fiber Frenzy
Charter rolled out Spectrum fiber services in Jefferson, Gibson and Henderson counties, Tennessee, linking over 3,000 homes and businesses. GFiber, fresh from its merger with Astound Broadband, began offering symmetrical speeds up to 8 Gbps in Las Vegas from a new Summerlin...
CSIRO Farm Trials Point to Low-Frequency Mining Connectivity Potential
CSIRO’s Data61 team is testing sub‑1 GHz low‑frequency signals as a rugged, long‑range communications layer for remote industries. Farm trials with Sharp demonstrated live video and AI‑driven livestock monitoring using a 240 MHz signal at just 0.01 mW. The research shows the spectrum...
FCC's Rule Blocks Dead From Receiving Subsidized Internet
"How the @FCC Is Trying to Make It Harder to Get Low-Income Internet" [Correction: How the FCC is trying to make it harder for dead people to get taxpayer money.] https://t.co/VlE3D5DHUc
Starlink’s First 100K Terminals Cost $2,500 Each
Starlink is a good example of this, everyone now seems to forget that the first 100K+ terminals cost ~$2500 each to make...
Patchy Wi-Fi at ACCC Despite Access Point Expansion
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) disclosed ongoing Wi‑Fi performance problems across its nine‑office footprint despite a recent rollout of 60 new wireless access points, bringing the total to 168. The issues include connection dropouts, weak signal strength, and...
Why Your Expensive New Router Feels Slow: 5 Next-Gen Features Disabled by Default
Many new Wi‑Fi 7 routers ship with key performance features turned off, causing users to experience slower speeds despite premium hardware. By default, routers often restrict channel width and disable OFDMA, MU‑MIMO, Target Wake Time, and Multi‑Link Operation. Enabling these settings...
Turk Telekom Opens 5G Technology and Innovation Centre in Istanbul
Turk Telekom has opened a 5G Technology and Innovation Centre at its Gayrettepe headquarters in Istanbul. The 600‑square‑metre hub serves as a live‑lab showcasing real‑world 5G applications and demos. It offers a test environment for startups, corporates, universities and public institutions...
Panasonic Enjoys Rapid IFE Growth as Connected Seatback Takes Wing
Panasonic Avionics reports rapid growth of its Astrova OLED inflight entertainment (IFE) platform as airlines adopt low‑latency LEO satellite connectivity, notably United Airlines’ Starlink rollout. United’s Starlink‑enabled seatbacks now let passengers stream personal services such as Spotify directly on the...
Democratic FCC Member Pushes Back on Carr's Broadcaster Threats
Lone Democrat on the FCC responds to Republican Chairman Brendan Carr’s threats to broadcasters: https://t.co/e9xfRAbUII
🛰️ AST SpaceMobile ($ASTS) Deep Dive
AST SpaceMobile’s shares have surged from under $20 to a market capitalization above $30 billion, drawing heightened attention from hedge funds and analysts. Recent filings show Cantor Fitzgerald increased its stake by roughly 140%, a rare move for a company still...
Bandwidth May Bottleneck Outdoor AI Beyond 5G
Will outdoor AI use cases, particularly when we get to “world view” based AI, overwhelm 5G ? Satellite uplinks ? And make many of those use cases, unusable ? Is the bottleneck going to be bandwidth ?
California Democrats Strip ISPs of First Amendment Rights
What’s the political libel one should use to describe California Democrats who led the way in stripping Internet Service Providers of their First Amendment rights? https://t.co/4Ylh2Cr4zF
How Verizon Handles Customers Who Misuse 5G Home Internet Service
Verizon’s 5G Home Internet serves roughly 40 million U.S. residences, offering speeds of 100‑300 Mbps at a base price of $35 per month. The service is strictly limited to the address listed in the customer’s order and is intended for non‑commercial residential...
SpaceX Acquiring Telcos Post‑IPO Is Unlikely
Like many people, I'm trying to decode @elonmusk & @SpaceX strategy in #telecoms, #mobile & #AI. I'd started to think that post-IPO, SpaceX might start to acquire terrestrial telcos. But I've changed my mind - it would make no sense. https://t.co/TVnXInOi2U
6G Will Fuse AI with Radar‑Style Sensing
6G Is Coming. Here’s What to Expect From the Next Generation of Cellular Tech “…AI, and radar-like ‘sensing” of vehicles, devices, and people’” https://t.co/02mPNn1kgj https://t.co/jLKd1p3shS
My Broadband Upgrade
British Telecom’s push to retire copper lines forced a small‑business owner to migrate his broadband and landline to digital services. The ISP mishandled the number‑porting request, leaving the business without its primary phone for a week while the new fibre...
Wi‑Fi Home Phone Brings Messenger Calls to Living Rooms
Playboy, November 2006 Uniden home phone with Windows Live Messenger audio call features over WiFi https://t.co/kOaod9OHpb
Broadcast Licenses Aren't Protected by the First Amendment
Constitutional law 101: “No one has a First Amendment right to a license or to monopolize a radio frequency; to deny a station license because ‘the public interest’ requires it ‘is not a denial of free speech.’” Supreme Court in Red...
Telecom News: Kyivstar, Apple, Samsung, Vodafone Idea
Kyivstar reported a 26% rise in core profit for 2025, with EBITDA of about $648 million, driven by a surge in digital services after acquiring ride‑hailing platform Uklon. Digital revenue jumped 467% to $124 million, and monthly active users of its super‑app...
Custom Wi‑Fi Amplifier Enables Live Tournament Streaming
Cell reception is always bad at the volleyball tournaments and the coach couldn’t stream live videos to family that couldn’t make it. Built this thing - wireless AP to cellular built amplifiers inside the battery casing with Omni directional antennas and...
Personal Hotspot Likely Causing Dreamliner Wi‑Fi Glitch
On a @united @BoeingAirplanes Dreamliner. Could this be a misconfiguration? Or someone's personal hotspot? I'm guessing the latter. #wifi #travel https://t.co/jjuz1ruR7V
Pagers and Paper Maps Make a Comeback in Moscow as the Internet Goes Dark
Moscow and parts of St. Petersburg have experienced intermittent mobile internet blackouts, cutting off apps, rides, and even basic calls. The Kremlin says the restrictions are security‑driven and may involve testing a “whitelist” that only permits essential services. The outages have...
Starlink Dominates D2D; Terrestrial Networks Still Superior
Good to see the #cluelesscult finally acknowledging that my Feb 2023 predictions that 1) Starlink would dominate the D2D market and 2) D2D performance will never match terrestrial networks were both totally correct...
The $41 Billion Telecom Fraud Secret
Global telecom operators reported $41.82 billion in fraud losses, a rise from the previous year, while consumer losses from spoofed calls remain largely hidden. Spoofed caller ID enables large‑scale authorized push payment scams, accounting for up to half of voice‑channel attacks....
HFCL Bags USD 1.10 Billion OFC Contract with Global MNC
HFCL Ltd. has secured a long‑term supply agreement with a global multinational corporation to provide high‑fibre‑count optical fiber cables (OFC) worth approximately USD 1.10 billion through December 2030. The contract will deliver multi‑million fibre‑kilometre volumes each year, marking HFCL’s first multi‑year OFC deal...
Defining the Blueprint | Shifting Contours of Connectivity in an AI-Native 6G Era
The telecom industry is redefining 6G as an AI‑native, cloud‑native architecture rather than a simple upgrade of 5G. AI will be embedded in every control loop, turning networks into self‑optimizing platforms that can predict failures and allocate resources in real...
Moscow's Mobile Blackouts Revert Digital City to Stone Age
“This is pushing a thriving city that prided itself on its digital sophistication back into the Stone Age.” @NastyaStognei on Moscow’s mobile blackouts, which have shut down almost all traffic as Russia seeks to control the internet: https://t.co/n8DhjD4Z27
AAP's Raghav Chadha Reignites Demand for 30-Day Tariffs, Affordable Voice-Only Plan
AAP MP Raghav Chadha has called on Indian telecom operators to align prepaid recharge cycles with calendar months and to keep essential voice and SMS services active long after a pack expires. He also proposed an inexpensive incoming‑only plan for...
Ericsson Drives 6G Journey Toward an Intelligent Fabric at MWC 2026
Ericsson used Mobile World Congress 2026 to showcase its AI‑native 6G roadmap, positioning its silicon‑based radios and open‑source software as the backbone of an intelligent network fabric. The company announced collaborations with Intel, NVIDIA, Qualcomm and the Linux Foundation’s OCUDU...
IOH, Safaricom Partner on AI, Mobile Financial Services
Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison (IOH) and Kenya's Safaricom have signed a partnership to co‑develop digital services, emphasizing artificial intelligence, mobile financial solutions, and network planning. The agreement leverages IOH’s push to embed AI across its telecom operations and Safaricom’s proven M‑Pay...
TRAI Moots Termination Charges to Tackle Spam
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has drafted rules to impose termination charges on commercial Application‑to‑Person (A2P) calls, aiming to curb bulk spam calls that masquerade as personal conversations. The proposal mirrors existing fees on commercial SMS and exempts...
Airtel Postpaid Plans 2026 Detailed: Full Price List, Data Benefits, Family SIM Options and OTT Offers
Bharti Airtel’s Infinity Postpaid portfolio in India now spans six tiers, priced from ₹449 to ₹1,749 monthly. Each plan bundles unlimited voice, 300‑420 GB of data, and a suite of digital services such as OTT subscriptions, 100 GB Google One storage, and...
Some BEAD Winners Seeing Tight Fiber Market
Rural broadband providers participating in the $42.45 billion BEAD program are encountering unexpected cancellations of orders for Build America, Buy America‑compliant fiber. Prices for BABA‑qualified cable have surged roughly 40 percent, straining project budgets and timelines. Manufacturers such as Corning cite...
AT&T Commits $250 Billion Through 2030 to Build Essential Infrastructure for Artificial Intelligence
AT&T announced a $250 billion capital spending plan through 2030 to expand its fiber and 5G networks, specifically targeting the bandwidth and latency needs of artificial‑intelligence workloads. The company aims to become the foundational network layer for the emerging AI economy,...